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Tag Archives: Kunal Kumar

Nagpur has been in the news ever since the political capital shifted under the current regime. All roads now lead to this ‘orange’ city which has always been a ‘capital in waiting’. The 710-km road that recently invited controversy was the Rs 46,000-crore Mumbai-Nagpur Expressway, which revised its invitation for bids with a supplementary advertisement and caused much heartburn, as the riders imposed were allegedly introduced to outfox fair competition. The project, which is expected to be completed in two years, envisages 16 packages of construction. High-speed corridors have proven to bring prosperity within the corridor zone and this can pave the way for some political capital, as 24 new nodes will be developed in phases projected to generate employment for 25,000 people each across logistic, industrial, IT, agro-industry, tourism, education, healthcare, auto, warehousing and food processing, besides from social infrastructure development including hotels, malls, petrol pumps, offices, hospitals and educational institutes.

Thirty more smart cities have been added to the existing 60, taking the tally to 90 cities that have been selected under the Centre’s Smart Cities mission, taking the total budgeted spend to over $31 billion. Of the ones selected, 26 have proposed affordable housing projects, 26 cities will be taking up school and hospital projects, and 29 will be taking up redesign and redevelopment of roads to enable walking and cycling. Development is likely to score higher in smaller cities as the impact of infrastructure projects is more visible and has a life-changing impact. This underscores the importance of the recently launched Energy Conservation Building Code 2017 (ECBC 2017) developed by the Ministry of Power and Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE). ECBC 2017 mandates a 25 per cent saving in energy for compliance. However, we recommend that the ECBC rating must devolve, unless renewed annually for effective compliance.

Led by its dynamic municipal commissioner Kunal Kumar, Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has created history by raising Rs 200 crore for its Rs 2,800-crore water supply project via bonds. The bonds have been listed on the stock exchanges. PMC plans to raise Rs 2,264 crore over the next five years and plans to repay the debt by enhancing its revenues through water charges.

The remarkable aspect of this issue was the appetite as the issue elicited oversubscription to the extent of Rs 1,200 crore. This sets the stage for a new stream of funds for municipalities while ushering in an era of transparency.

The worst news for India’s economy has been the loan waivers the state governments have conceded to, all at the altar of political capital. On the other hand, the GST juggernaut is ready to roll. Now, it’s time to brace for impact.